Ray Bradbury / Fahrenheit 451

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Transcript of Ray Bradbury / Fahrenheit 451

The Author behind Fahrenheit 451Ray BradburyBorn August 22, 1920He grew up in Waukegan, Illinois with his parents and extended family.The beginning...When Ray was 11, he began writing his own stories. With the United States going through the Great Depression, writing was one of the only forms of entertainment Bradbury had.The Great DepressionRay Bradbury's childhood...The family moved to Los Angeles when Ray was 14 years old. With only 40 dollars, they managed to survive until Ray's father found work. Ecstatic about living in Hollywood, Bradbury would sneak into a local theater to watch shows. Thus his involvement with the arts began.While attending Los Angeles High School, Bradbury was active in the drama club. When he wasn't at school, he could easily be found in the library. His fascination with texts began at a young age, and it carried through when the family moved to California. After submitting numerous short stories to various magazines, Bradbury finally caught a break. His short story entitled, "Homecoming" was published in Mademoiselle magazine .Family timesBradbury lived at home until he was 27. Without ever obtaining a drivers license, Ray moved out, met, and married Marguerite McClure in 1947. Together the couple had four daughters. Bradbury was with his wife until the day she died in 2003. His wife, better known as Maggie, was the only woman Bradbury dated in all his life.Bradbury went on to have a very successful career. Best know for his Sci-Fi Thriller "Fahrenheit 451," Bradbury also wrote various pieces of fiction, short essays on the arts and culture, novels, poems, and playwrights. He hosted his own theater and had numerous pieces of his literature adapted in various forms of media. His career was very successful. In all, Bradbury has published more than 30 books and close to 600 short stories!CareerRay Bradbury graduated from Los Angeles high school in 1938. He didn't go on to college. Instead, he has proclaimed that he was self-taught. He was quoted saying, "Libraries raised me. I don't believe in colleges and universities. I believe in libraries because most students don't have any money. When I graduated from high school, it was during the Depression and we had no money. I couldn't go to college, so I went to the library three days a week for 10 years." Reading every book in the library helped Bradbury become the writer the world has immortalized. EducationRay Bradbury died in Los Angeles on June 5, 2012, at the age of 91. He had endured a lengthy illness. The New York Times' obituary stated that Bradbury was "the writer most responsible for bringing modern science fiction into the literary mainstream." His work has inspired artists, writers, and teachers across the world. Well known people like Stephen King and Steven Spielberg have attributed Ray as an inspiration.Legacy."For many Americans, the news of Ray Bradbury's death immediately brought to mind images from his work, imprinted in our minds, often from a young age. His gift for storytelling reshaped our culture and expanded our world. But Ray also understood that our imaginations could be used as a tool for better understanding, a vehicle for change, and an expression of our most cherished values. There is no doubt that Ray will continue to inspire many more generations with his writing, and our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends."The day after Ray Bradbury's death, President Barack Obama released the following statement:AwardsBradbury was awarded with various honors for his written works, as well as media adaptations. In 2004 he was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President George W. BushWhat was happening in our world when Ray Bradbury published Fahrenheit 451 in 1953?Before we begin...In the decade before Bradbury wrote Fahrenheit 451, America faced WWII. The events at the end of the war were still hauntingly fresh in the minds of Americans and people across the world.Bradbury published Fahrenheit 451 with WWII fresh in his mind, and television/media becoming the forefront of American culture. KEEP THESE THIGNS IN MIND WHILE READING!Let's get this straight...1950sWhat about the Sci-Fi thing?Any Questions???Let's dive in!"There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them."Ray Bradbury"Don't think. Thinking is the enemy of creativity. It's self-conscious, and anything self-conscious is lousy. You can't try to do things. You simply must do things."-Ray Bradbury"We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. The trick is, knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out."-Ray Bradbury"Science fiction is any idea that occurs in the head and doesn't exist yet, but soon will, and will change everything for everybody, and nothing will ever be the same again. As soon as you have an idea that changes some small part of the world you are writing science fiction. It is always the art of the possible, never the impossible."-Ray Bradbury